Nord User Forum

Hi, I'm new to Nord and new to the forum. Before I ask my questions, first is bit of background so you know where I'm coming from. And I know there are many "Stage 3 vs Piano 5" posts out there, but I have done a ton of research and can't figure out what to do. Thanks for reading!

I'm an experienced rock piano player--started playing at 4 years old, played in bands in high school and college, moved to NYC, played in bars/clubs, asked my wife to marry me playing a song on a Yamaha P90 piano, etc. etc. etc. But then I got a serious job, had kids, sold my gear (except a Yamaha home piano) and am only now, at 51 years old, getting back in for another go at it!

Like most of you, I'm fortunate to be able to consider a Nord and after playing the Stage 3 tonight at Guitar Center, I finally understand why they are so expensive: I got chills playing it! Really. While piano is my thing, my creativity is peaked by all the other fun stuff on modern keyboards (my last great one was a Yamaha S90 paired with a Kurzweil PC2r.) Playing the Stage 3 was truly inspiring. That's *exactly* what I need right now, and no other keyboard that I have played in the last few months of searching has done that for me. (I have not yet found a Piano 5 to play.)

So that amazing experience tonight sealed the deal on a Nord. But it is a true dilemma on the Piano 5 vs. Stage 3. With the Stage 3 88 at $1,100 discount now, clearly the end is in sight for that 5 year old keyboard. But does that matter? At this price, If a Stage 4 comes out tomorrow and it is so much better, it will not be $1,100 off, and I could get it in a couple of years, probably with a decent trade on the 3. Maybe the timing issue really isn't one?

Then I wonder about the Piano 5, which I can get at $350 off because of a trade in credit I have. Better action, from what people say. But I liked the Stage 3--thought it felt fine, maybe even great. I'm incredibly picky about the sounds, but less so about the keybed, I guess. But the Piano 5 also is newer and supports the 4.0 library. Does that matter? Is this a situation of "If you can afford it, always get the Stage 3 unless you really don't like the keybed"? I’m not a big organ player, and synth sounds are fun, but not my bread and butter. But…organs and synths are FUN and I want to enjoy playing again!

Any thoughts would be MUCH appreciated. While I've come to terms with spending the cash, I want to get the right model. Thank you so much for helping me decide.

Perhaps you can have a look ay my thread general-nord-forum-f29/the-feel-of-a-no ... 23039.html

About a year ago I was in the same boat as you. Even after trying a NP5 I think I'm still pretty content with the NS3. You really should try both though for a more informed decision but I think it's safe to say if you're happy with how the NS3 feels it should be enough...

In addtion you said you're more of a rock player type so I do think a NS3 may be more suitable for you as an NP5 shud be more for classical players.. I could be wrong though. YMMV.

Interesting. Like you I always figured I'd like "better" keybeds. But what is better is different to everyone. I'm hoping to play the Piano 5 tomorrow. But I really like the variety of sounds on the Stage 3. Unless I'm completely blown away by the Piano 5 feel, I'm leaning towards the Stage 3 88. Curious about what people think about the timing. With the age of the Stage 3, is this simply not the right time to jump into such an expensive keyboard? Glad to hear you're happy with your decision--thank you for that perspective.

I think there's a lot of people debating Stage vs Piano I know I was a few months back. For me it boils down to what you want to do. Piano 5 is for those who main focus is AP and EP and then synth and organ samples and basic effects. The Stage 3 has everything organ engine with drawbars, AP and EP engine, full synth section and samples player and more effects. So you mainly want to do piano oriented keyboard or a one board does it all keyboard. Are synth samples enough or do you want to do sound design as well. I found that more important than keybeds.

Wait namm 2023 its 40 years anniversary of nord at 2023 so very very possible for stage 4

docbop wrote:So you mainly want to do piano oriented keyboard or a one board does it all keyboard. Are synth samples enough or do you want to do sound design as well. I found that more important than keybeds.

This is very true. Additionally part of the reason I decided on an NS3 is for my case, I have to do a little bit of everything, and that niche definitely included sound design. Part of that need alone definitely geared me more towards the NS3.

dansnord wrote:With the age of the Stage 3, is this simply not the right time to jump into such an expensive keyboard?

About this particular point - I wouldn't worry about that. Even if a new Stage were around the corner (and by the way we don't know that, despite there has been some sort of clue in this respect: nord-stage-forum-f3/nord-stage-4-t19598 ... ml#p158487), having something new doesn't necessarily mean that that's going to be better for what you need than the Stage 3. A few things to consider:

1. A new Stage 4 would likely be very expensive, whereas it seems that prices for the S3 have dropped quite a significant bit in the US.

2. A new Stage 4 will likely have some bugs in the initial stages, that may well take months to get fully (if ever "fully") addressed. Look at the Wave 2 as an example: a few years have passed and it still has some apparently significant bugs (according to users who have it, I don't). The Stage 3 is 5-6 years old and it still has some minor bugs, that likely will never get fixed.

3. If you're undecided between the Piano 5 and the Stage 3, this seems to indicate you're not necessarily into all the other stuff, besides piano, that the Stage does. This means that you mightn't necessarily be able to appreciate the improvements of the Stage 4 over the 3, which probably will involve the synth and things like more sound engines, more freely routable effects... If you're a piano player mostly, all these things might not be worth the extra money.

4. As far as piano sounds go, the piano library is still the piano library, so that's going to sound the same on the Stage 4 as well. Granted the 4 will certainly have more memory, but again not sure it's worth the waiting and the cost.

5. Some of the new features might not even be considered "improvements" for some users. For example I don't particularly like the program/patch navigation approach of the Piano 5. If that's going to be the new Nord standard, I think I'd prefer what I have now on my Stage 3. Another example of retrocession as opposed to improvements is the more limited MIDI implementation of the Stage 3 over the 2.

Considering the big price drop, If I were you, I would go for the 3 even if I knew for certain that the 4 was coming. Provided, of course, that I was fully satisfied with what the 3 does "as it is now". You tried it and it seems you are, so I wouldn't overthink this!

P.S. All the above, of course, is about whether to wait or not to wait for the Stage successor. Whether going for the Stage or the Piano, because of the keybed differences, is a different question...

dansnord wrote:Hi, I'm new to Nord and new to the forum. Before I ask my questions, first is bit of background so you know where I'm coming from. And I know there are many "Stage 3 vs Piano 5" posts out there, but I have done a ton of research and can't figure out what to do. Thanks for reading!

I'm an experienced rock piano player--started playing at 4 years old, played in bands in high school and college, moved to NYC, played in bars/clubs, asked my wife to marry me playing a song on a Yamaha P90 piano, etc. etc. etc. But then I got a serious job, had kids, sold my gear (except a Yamaha home piano) and am only now, at 51 years old, getting back in for another go at it!

TL;DR - IMHO, since you don't have a gig-worthy rig, if you're ready to play now, get the NS3 and get back out there. There's no sense in putting your reentry into the music scene on hold by waiting for a product that hasn't been announced. Even if you decide upon getting an NS4 later, the resale value of an NS3 will minimize your cost of ownership, but you will gain many months of enjoyment and not miss opportunities due to waiting for an NS4.

---

I was in a similar situation to you back in 2017 when I reentered the live music scene in my 50s after a break of around 24 years. I was looking for an all-in-one board to cover most any genre, since I didn't have a gig-ready rig. So, the Stage 3 was a great fit because I wanted piano, organ, and synth, with multi-split capabilities and a workflow that let me roll my own sounds without having to search for presets or dive through complex menus.

Luckily, my search started in August, I made my decision in September, and the NS3, which had been announced back in April, was going to be available in October, so it made it an easy decision to go with the NS3 over the NS2EX, especially with the upgrades to the features and displays in the NS3.

In the case of the unannounced NS4, there really isn't any certainty around availability for purchase. For the Stage 3, it took 6 months from the announcement to availability in the US (at least from Sweetwater and Kraft) even though Nord's announcement said availability in July. The price drop may indicate the Stage 4 availability will be sooner than 6 months after the announcement, but that's just speculation.

On a side note, if you're considering buying an NS3 then upgrading to the NS4, I would be prepared for the possibility that programs on the NS3 will not be able to be transfereed to the NS4, just like NS2 programs didn't transfer to the NS3.

I would guess that after the discounted NS3 stock is sold out, a new NS3-HA88 that you would buy now for around $4,500 ($4,199 plus sales tax) could be sold for around $3,500-$4,000 in a worst-case scenario and probably more depending upon the price of a new NS4.

At that point, it all comes down to the opportunity cost of waiting and how soon you want to get started, vs. a potential "rental" cost of $500-$1,000 to use an NS3 until you can decide whether an NS4 or some other board is preferable. I got my NS3 in early October and sat in with an old bandmate's group for a couple of gigs to start knocking off the rust, then auditioned and joined my current band in early November. Had I waited 3-6 months to get a gig-worthy rig assembled, who knows how things would have transpired, and what I would have missed.

Sage advice. Thank you! I'm going to play both the Piano 5 and Stage 3 side-by-side tonight. I will put out of my mind the possibility of a Stage 4. You're 100% right about the resale value, and delays in actually getting a Stage 4 even if it were announced today. You only live once. No time to waste.

dansnord wrote:Sage advice. Thank you! I'm going to play both the Piano 5 and Stage 3 side-by-side tonight. I will put out of my mind the possibility of a Stage 4. You're 100% right about the resale value, and delays in actually getting a Stage 4 even if it were announced today. You only live once. No time to waste.

Would like to hear your thoughts after your side-by-side trial